The Dragon King's Shaman

Angry Lizard

Erik

Something wasn’t right. It scratched at my senses all the way home. It was galling to fly about in a metal box when I had perfectly good wings. Dragons had cloaking magic to avoid detection when we flew, but it only lasted for short flights. Hence the need for my jet. I couldn’t settle to get any work done.

I drove like a bat out of hell back from the airstrip. The sensation didn’t lessen on arriving at Quinn’s pack. I couldn’t sense her in the pack. I checked the hospital, following her jasmine scent through the corridors. The door to her room stood slightly ajar. I hesitated for a second, as I’d not been inside before. Her clothes were tossed from the wardrobe. It didn’t seem like her style; she was neat and particular.

Agitation twisted in my gut, and my dragon paced about and flapped his wings inside me. I strode across to the packhouse. The surrounding night seemed to darken as if it sensed my mood.

“Incoming, angry lizard,” Alec said under his breath, looking up from his laptop as I burst into Quinn’s office.

Rina grunted, not even looking up from Alec’s screen.

“Where is my mate?” I asked, the hair on my nape rising.

Irina didn't look up. “Welcome back brother. Good to see you too.”

“Don’t f**k with me, Rina. Where is she? Her room’s trashed, and I can’t sense her.”

I knew I should have put that tracker on her, but she never normally left that damn hospital.

Quinn walked into the office, looking around warily as he sensed the mood. l thrust the package I retrieved for him into his hands.

“Thanks, Erik. What’s going on?” He thought at me.

“Exactly what I’d like to know.” I pressed my mind against Irina’s and came against a brick wall.

“Just because my mate puts on a constipated face and speaks into your mind doesn’t mean you can snoop around in mine for your answers.” She flicked her eyes up, and they flashed dangerously.

I didn’t care if she was still mad at me for something I did weeks ago. I needed answers.

“Tell me!” Scales rippled across my skin.

“What’s going on Irina?” Quinn asked. “If this is about Avery, I left her with Cordelia earlier. She seemed calmer.”

“Calmer?” I asked, confused.

“Yes, she received an unwanted bouquet earlier,” Quinn said.

A bouquet of flowers? From whom?

“Flay them!” My dragon roared. A plume of fire bellowed from his mouth, and it chafed inside me.

Hot smoke unfurled from my nostrils. Dragon gods, when was the last time I blew out smoke?

Irina coughed and waved it away. “Calm down, brother, it gets worse, and I don’t want you smoking us out. It’s clear they were from some kind of ex. The note said, ‘he’d found her’.”

I clenched my fist. “Show me.”

She passed a small card that smelled of roses and faintly of jasmine. My blood boiled as I read it.

“Who the f**k sent this?” Scales rippled again, more deeply along my skin as his fire blazed inside me.

My dragon wanted out. I restrained him with all my strength. Someone was hunting my mate.

“Where the hell is she, then? Is she in the safe room?” I asked.

Alec winced, and Irina made a derisive noise. “She asked me if ‘I’d come to lock her up for you’.”

The flames flushed through me. We were back to arguing over protecting vulnerable and irreplaceable people. If she wanted an apology, she’d be waiting a long time.

“When did you see her?” Quinn asked Irina. “Cordelia told me she’d gone to her room.”

“She’s left,” Irina said.

“She’s what?” I said, so loud that the glass rattled in the windows.

“She didn’t feel safe here. I wonder why?” She looked pointedly at me, her gaze like a thousand knives.

My mate had run away rather than turned to me for help? My throat tightened painfully.

My beast thrashed, desperate to take to the air. I scoured around for some calmness.

“You let her leave alone?” Smoke billowed from my nostrils, heating the small room.

“Calm yourself before you torch Quinn’s office,” Irina said, dismissively.

I started towards her, clenching my fists. I loved my sister dearly, but I wanted to throttle her.

She looked totally unafraid of me, as usual, and her lip curled in dislike. “She has a tracker; two warriors followed her, and Preeda is waiting at Zee’s airstrip. She’s going to shadow her and protect her. So no, I didn’t force her to stay or lock her up. She’s scared, Erik. I can only assume she has a dragon hunting her. You need to follow her and help her trust you.”

“Guys, you need to look at this,” Alec said from his seat.

Irina’s phone rang as we all turned to him.

“b***h, you need to get here. The doc’s gone AWOL.” Preeda’s voice carried from the receiver into the room.

Preeda was an ex-hunter who co-owned a fighting gym and arena with Irina. She was a skilled hunter despite being prickly as hell. My stomach sank at her words.

“What do you mean?” asked Irina as Alec pointed at something in his screen.

“She drove in, then wheel span back out.”

“Send me your location,” Irina clipped.

“I fly us.”

I exploded into action. I needed to find my mate! I didn’t bother with the stairs. I flung Quinn’s window open and jumped out. I shifted before I hit the ground. My magic surged through me, my furious beast bursting forward.

Irina ran outside and climbed onto my neck. She’d flown on my back a million times and hopped up lithely. Her weight felt like a tiny bird had landed on me. Quinn’s eyes flashed in question. I was taking his pregnant mate away, and his wolf was furious. She’d be fine. My sister was hard as nails. I was seething mad at her for letting my mate go, but I needed her help right now to find her again.

Irina directed me through her thoughts, and we flew north a short distance. From the sky, I could see a wrecked car, crashed off the road into the edge of the forest. I circled and saw Preeda with some demons rushing down from the road. I landed in front of the car and shifted, frantic to find my mate.

The car was empty and smelled of blood and her scent. I smacked the roof, adding to the dents. It was empty. Red caught my eye in the footwell. A small dye cast dragon. Red with golden spikes. House Ignis!

“She went this way, Erik!” Irina shouted.

I smashed the window and grabbed the dragon statue, tossing it to Preeda, who caught it with a disgusted look. I forced myself to focus on Avery’s scent, taking off at a run. My longer legs outstripped my sister and the demons who were conversing rapidly in Latin, something about a barrier being broken.

Her scent became more concentrated as I rounded some rocks.

“Forgive me.” Her quiet voice carried to me like a melody on the wind.

She sat slumped back against the rock, pressing a syringe in her arm that hung limply at her side. Her eyes closed, her face pale against the bright red of her hair. Time stilled as she went to press the plunger. I lurched forward, knocking the syringe from her hand.

Her eyelids fluttered open and focused on me. “You’re here, even when I open my eyes.” She reached up and cupped my face, a sad smile on her lips until her eyes rolled back.

I caught her before she collapsed backwards. My heart raced, overcome by an unfamiliar sensation. I wanted to race away with her, shield her, force my strength into her. I cradled her body to mine. She was so fragile. Panic clawed at my insides.

What had she been about to inject? Had she got any of it in?

I strained, listening to her heartbeat. It seemed like she fainted. Casting about on the ground, I felt for the syringe. My hand seized it. Thank the dragon gods, it was still full.

I gathered her up closer to me and held her small body to mine.

Irina and Preeda caught up with me, and we made our way back to the road. I forced myself to calm down, focusing on her even breathing. I’d wanted nothing more than to hold my mate in my arms, but this wasn’t how I’d envisioned it. Someone suggested I put on some shorts, but I just got into Preeda’s car buck naked.

I had more questions than answers as we drove the demons back to the airstrip. I memorised every detail of her delicate face.

“What made her run?” Irina asked a blond-haired demon she sat next to.

“Lucas said she took one look at him and fled.” The demon’s voice was low and musical.

“I think we just found out what is hunting her,” Irina said.

My dragon roared.

Great, there was a f*****g demon after my mate.